What FedEx Taught Us About the Power of Survey Research

We at QuestionPro often talk about online surveys as helpful tools to gauge customer satisfaction and test new trends. Another great way to use online surveys is to ascertain whether marketing efforts are increasing sales and brand awareness. A great example of this type of survey is FedEx Office’s recently released “What’s Your Sign?” survey.

The FedEx study surveyed 1,000 consumers to gauge their opinions on whether there is a connection between small business signage and positive consumer action, including the impact a sign has on consumer intent to visit a store, make a purchase and more. The survey results are good news for small businesses that use attractive signs to promote their stores.

Key findings include the following.

• Almost seven in ten (68%) American consumers have actually purchased a product or service because a sign caught their eye.

• Almost eight in 10 (76%) consumers have entered a store simply because its sign caught their interest. In addition, 75% of those consumers will tell someone else about the store

• Three out of four consumers (75%) said they have told someone about a store based simply on its signage.

• Seventy-nine percent of shoppers claimed to have remembered the business solely from the signs. What’s also interesting is if the signage was impressive, 51% of consumers later looked up the store online.

The survey found that certain genders and age groups are more likely to be swayed by store signage, especially women and young customers. Two in five females – or 42% – say they would enter a store based only upon the signage, even if they never visited the store previously (compared to only 31% of male shoppers). This finding may be due to the fact that women are attracted to features such as creativity and color.

From a survey research perspective, what is valuable about FedEx’s study is the fact that survey that reached 1,000 people can produce extremely valuable and telling results that can then be applied to retail stores and businesses across the country. It is a great lesson in the power of survey research and what you can learn through simple and well-designed online surveys.